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Centre-State Relations in the Indian Constitution

 

Centre-State Relations in the Indian Constitution

🇮🇳 Centre-State Relations (Part XI & XII)

Part Articles Title
Part XI 245 to 263 Relations between the Union and the States
Part XII 264 to 300A Finance, Property, Contracts, and Suits

🔹 Part XI – Legislative & Administrative Relations (Articles 245–263)

1️⃣ Legislative Relations (Articles 245–255)

Article Provision
245 Territorial extent of laws
246 Division of powers – Union, State, Concurrent Lists
247 Parliament can establish extra High Courts
248 Residuary powers with Union
249 Parliament can legislate on State List in national interest (Rajya Sabha resolution)
250 During National Emergency, Union can legislate on State List
251 In conflict between Union and Concurrent laws, Union prevails
252 Two or more States can request Parliament to make laws on State matters

2️⃣ Administrative Relations (Articles 256–263)

Article Provision
256 States must comply with Union laws
257 Union can guide States for development or protection
258 President can entrust Union functions to States
261 Full faith and credit to public acts and judicial proceedings across India
263 Inter-State Council – for cooperation between states

🔸 Three Types of Legislative Lists – 7th Schedule

List Powers Who Makes Laws?
Union List 97 subjects (e.g. Defence, Railways, Foreign Affairs) Parliament
State List 66 subjects (e.g. Police, Health, Local Govt.) State Legislatures
Concurrent List 47 subjects (e.g. Education, Forests, Marriage) Both – but Union law prevails in conflict

🔹 Part XII – Financial Relations (Articles 264–293)

💰 Centre-State Financial Relations

Article Provision
268 Stamp duties – collected by Centre, assigned to States
269 Inter-state trade taxes – levied and collected by Union but assigned to States
270 Taxes shared between Union and States (GST now part of this)
275 Grants-in-aid to States by Union
280 Finance Commission – distributes taxes between Centre and States
282 Centre or States may grant funds for public purposes even if not in their list
293 States can borrow with consent of Union (in certain cases)

🧠 Key Institutions Involved

Institution Role
Finance Commission (Art. 280) Recommends devolution of taxes to states
Inter-State Council (Art. 263) Promotes Centre–State cooperation
NITI Aayog Replaced Planning Commission, promotes cooperative federalism

📊 Comparison: Union vs State Powers

Feature Union State
Law-making Powers Union & Concurrent List State & Concurrent List
Residuary Powers Parliament (Art. 248) ❌
Control during Emergency Can legislate on any matter Limited
Financial Control Receives greater revenue share Relies on devolution/grants

📘 Summary Chart

          📘 Centre–State Relations
          ┌────────────┬────────────┬────────────┐
          ▼            ▼            ▼
     Legislative   Administrative   Financial
     (Art. 245–255) (Art. 256–263)  (Art. 264–293)
          │            │            │
  7th Schedule    Inter-State     Tax Sharing,
  (Union, State,   Council        Grants, Loans,
  Concurrent List)               Finance Commission

📜 Landmark Judgments

  • S.R. Bommai vs Union (1994) – Limits misuse of Art. 356 (President’s Rule)

  • State of West Bengal vs Union (1963) – Parliament has power to acquire state property

  • Kesavananda Bharati (1973) – Federalism is part of Basic Structure

Here are MCQs on Centre–State Relations (Part XI & XII of the Indian Constitution) – highly relevant for UPSC, UKPSC, SSC, and State PSC exams:

✅ MCQs on Centre–State Relations (with Answers)

🟩 Legislative Relations

  1. Which Article deals with the division of powers between the Union and the States?
    A) Article 245
    B) Article 246
    C) Article 248
    D) Article 250
    ✔️ Answer: B) Article 246

  2. How many lists are there in the 7th Schedule of the Constitution?
    A) 2
    B) 3
    C) 4
    D) 5
    ✔️ Answer: B) 3

  3. Which list contains subjects on which both the Centre and States can legislate?
    A) Union List
    B) State List
    C) Concurrent List
    D) Residuary List
    ✔️ Answer: C) Concurrent List

  4. In case of a conflict between Union and State laws on a subject in the Concurrent List, which prevails?
    A) State law
    B) Both are invalid
    C) Union law
    D) Law passed later
    ✔️ Answer: C) Union law (Article 254)

  5. Which Article gives the Parliament residuary powers?
    A) Article 248
    B) Article 250
    C) Article 246
    D) Article 252
    ✔️ Answer: A) Article 248

🟩 Administrative Relations

  1. Which Article empowers the Union to give directions to States to ensure compliance with laws?
    A) Article 245
    B) Article 256
    C) Article 261
    D) Article 248
    ✔️ Answer: B) Article 256

  2. Which Article provides for the establishment of an Inter-State Council?
    A) Article 263
    B) Article 260
    C) Article 280
    D) Article 356
    ✔️ Answer: A) Article 263

  3. The President can entrust functions of the Union Government to the State Government under:
    A) Article 352
    B) Article 250
    C) Article 258
    D) Article 368
    ✔️ Answer: C) Article 258

🟩 Financial Relations

  1. Finance Commission is constituted under which Article of the Constitution?
    A) Article 264
    B) Article 280
    C) Article 266
    D) Article 300A
    ✔️ Answer: B) Article 280

  2. Which Article allows Parliament to make laws for the whole or any part of India to implement international treaties?
    A) Article 246
    B) Article 248
    C) Article 253
    D) Article 260
    ✔️ Answer: C) Article 253

  3. Which Article deals with taxes levied and collected by the Union but assigned to States?
    A) Article 268
    B) Article 270
    C) Article 275
    D) Article 269
    ✔️ Answer: D) Article 269

  4. Grants-in-aid to states from the Consolidated Fund of India are provided under:
    A) Article 270
    B) Article 275
    C) Article 280
    D) Article 281
    ✔️ Answer: B) Article 275

🟩 Mixed Questions

  1. How many subjects are currently in the Union List?
    A) 97
    B) 66
    C) 47
    D) 99
    ✔️ Answer: A) 97

  2. Which Article allows Parliament to legislate on a State List subject during National Emergency?
    A) Article 250
    B) Article 249
    C) Article 248
    D) Article 252
    ✔️ Answer: A) Article 250

  3. Which Article requires “full faith and credit” for public acts across India?
    A) Article 256
    B) Article 261
    C) Article 263
    D) Article 268
    ✔️ Answer: B) Article 261

🧠 Score Evaluation

Correct Answers Evaluation
13–15 🌟 Excellent – You’re a Pro!
10–12 ✅ Good – Solid knowledge
7–9 📘 Average – Revise again
Below 7 🔁 Needs improvement – Read full notes again


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